Two-time Elite World Champion Bart Wellens just announced today at a press conference his retirement from racing – at the age of 36. A drop in his results combined with his re-occuring back problems are his reasons for retiring. “I simply can no longer bring myself to continue to do all the effort to compete any longer,” explains Wellens.

Back in December, Wellens’ Telenet-Fidea team manager Hans Van Kasteren had publicly stated that Wellens should just stop with racing, so it is doubtful Van Kasteren will take any actions regarding Wellens’ breaking his team contract a year early.

In addition, for over a year now Wellens has been part of the doping investigation with the Leuven doctor: the same case that includes names like Tom Meeusen, Laurens Sweeck and road racer Greg Van Avermaet. On March 13th Wellens has an appointment with the Belgian Cycling Federation’s disciplinary commission where he will attempt to defend himself against the doping charges.

He had a great series of results between 2002-2004, where he was largely considered the cyclocross racer to beat. He was the Elite World Champion in 2003 and 2004, and in 2004 and 2007, he was the Belgian national champion. In addition, he won the world cup overall in 2003, and the Superprestige and GVA Trofee overall in 2004.

]]>http://www.cxmagazine.com/bart-wellens-announces-retirement-cyclocross-2015/feed0Vote Today and Win: Cyclocross Magazine 2014/2015 Readers’ Choice Awards Surveyhttp://www.cxmagazine.com/readers-choice-awards-2014-2015-vote-win
http://www.cxmagazine.com/readers-choice-awards-2014-2015-vote-win#commentsSun, 01 Mar 2015 19:11:22 +0000http://www.cxmagazine.com/?p=65961It’s that time of year again: Awards season is here, and it goes well beyond the Grammys and this Sunday’s Oscars. The 2015 Cyclocross World Championships and ...

But we also have good news. Unlike those entertainment and Europe-based series awards, you have a say in one prestigious award: our annual Cyclocross Magazine Readers’ Choice Awards.

Yes, unlike our review-based Editors’ Awards, Readers’ Choice Awards are a popularity contest, not unlike NBA’s top honors. We’ve changed up many of the questions, and to appease all the varied, passionate cyclocrossers, nearly every question has a fill-in option. Use it liberally.

Eleven randomly-drawn lucky voters will win prizes, which include our Handups are Not a Crime flask, and ten subscriptions to our magazine. Vote only once, and use a real email address so that you can claim your prize. Fill out the form below, or if you prefer, view the stand-alone form here.

Sven Nys After His Crash

In the last cyclocross race of the year, a time trial that Mathieu van der Poel eventually won, Sven Nys was caught up in a crash after colliding head on with a crossing spectator, breaking his Trek in half. Nys and the spectator, Jean-Pierre Decoene of 64 years of age, both came away with injuries, with Nys retiring to his camper with a headache and Decoene being taken to the Red Cross.

According to reports from Sporza.be, Decoene recalls the staff at the event allowing him through: “The signalers were regularly crossing people, so I did. I wanted to help my son see the race better. Along with two others I got the permission to cross, but I was a bit slower. Out of nowhere, I was suddenly hit and I fell to the ground. I was groggy on the ground. The people called around me told me I was scum… After the accident I was treated like a murderer.”

The largest extent to his injuries was needing stitches to close a wound on his elbow. As for Sven Nys, he had a hard time getting out of bed the following day with his entire right side of his body hurting and a persistent headache, but claimed that after a few days he would be ok.

“The only thing I can say is, Sorry, Sven, this really was not intentional,” Decoene said.

The signalers at the course argue that the man was crossing while ignoring their ban.

Jan Verstraeten of Crelan-Euphony commented on the actions which were taken by Nys after the incident: “On the advice of the insurance, Sven has had a complaint drawn up for the police of Tremelo, so that further investigation could be launched.” Nys later followed up on the comment: “That PV is simply a requirement for insurance, but I have no bad intentions with it. I don’t want to prosecute that man, he made no more than an error of judgment. ”

Decoene reacted to the news: “Fortunately, Sven sees that I did nothing wrong. I am not reckless fan… And to be clear: I have nothing against Sven Nys. Hopefully he still races in a year, because cyclocross will never be beautiful without him.”

The Investigation Against Sweeck, Meeusen Resumes

In other news, the pending investigation against Laurens Sweeck and Tom Meeusen, which almost saw both competitors left out of the 2015 Cyclocross World Championships, resumed with the potential penalty of a two-year suspension from the sport.

Both riders have already been accused of their association with an Ozone doctor, but in the last few days, it was also released that they are being accused of injecting themselves with Vaminolact, a product that is given to babies to recuperate. The drug itself is not on the banned substance list if taken orally, and has been shown to help in the recovery of riders after an event, but the Royal Belgian Federation has stated that it cannot be injected.

Sweeck admits that he has taken the product, although only orally. Meeusen, on the other hand, will have a hard time convincing the committee that he did the same as doping hunters found infusions of the product in his camper after an anonymous tip in 2012, during a cyclocross race in Diegem.

]]> Milton Keynes, UK – At the 2015 IceBike, our European contributor, Philip Ingham, was able to capture the newest Ridley cyclocross lineup for their 2016 models. Immediately apparent is the lack of cantilever brake models as Ridley will only be offering disc builds. Also of note, there is an expansion of the X-Night model as well as the elimination of the X-Fire brand.

Last summer, we took a first look at the 2015 Ridley X-Night SL, which was a superlight branded bike through an intricate component selection, but with the same carbon modulus of the other X-Night frames. This year, Ridley is furthering the distinction between the X-Night and X-Night SL models. The latter will retain the highest level carbon grade of the cyclocross bikes, while the X-Nights will have the second-tier carbon grade. The initial reports have the X-Night models sitting between 150g and 170g heaver than the SL models.

It should be noted that this isn’t simply the case of the X-Night models supplanting the old X-Fire counterparts. While the carbon layup will be different between the X-Night and X-Night SL, the molds used for both will be the same, whereas the geometry of the older X-Fire was completely different than that of the X-Night for the 2015 models.

We also have a first look at Ridley’s alloy cyclocross models: The X-Ride and the X-Bow. We have included the specifications and pricing for each model. Please note that the figures translated to dollars is for purposes of comparison to how these will be priced in the United Kingdom, and will not reflect the shipping costs and marketing in North America.

The models are not yet finalized. Reports are also coming in of development of an Oryx thru-axle prototype fork that has a summer release date and may be included in on some of the 2016 models as shown below. Although the models were showcased with quick release forks, Ridley provided spec sheets where bikes the various Oryx TA models are slotted to have the new thru-axle systems.

]]>http://www.cxmagazine.com/ridley-cyclocross-models-2016-xnight-xbow-xride-icebike/feed0Gage Hecht Gets New Teammates for 2015-16 Season: Alpha Bicycle Company- Vista Subaru Team Expandshttp://www.cxmagazine.com/alpha-bicycle-company-vista-subaru-team-expands-gage-hecht-teammates-2015-2016-season
http://www.cxmagazine.com/alpha-bicycle-company-vista-subaru-team-expands-gage-hecht-teammates-2015-2016-season#commentsWed, 25 Feb 2015 20:25:19 +0000http://www.cxmagazine.com/?p=66151Gage Hecht was thrust into the international scene in 2014 when he took an astonishing win in the Junior Race at Koksijde. Now that he ...

Gage Hecht was thrust into the international scene in 2014 when he took an astonishing win in the Junior Race at Koksijde. Now that he is moving into his second and final year as a Junior rider, expectations are high on the phenomenal athlete. Alpha Bicycle Company –Vista Subaru have now expanded their Elite Development Program, and Hecht will ride next year with plenty of teammates. The following is a release by the team:

Brannan Fix joins the team as a first year U23 after a successful season concluding with a Top 10 at US National Championships and 15th place finish at World Championships in Tabor. Evan Clouse also joins Hecht in the UCI Junior category after his Silver medal in the Junior 15-16 at US National Championships last season.

On the women’s side Ashley Zoerner will be looking for top results in the newly created UCI Youth Women’s category. For the past four seasons, Ashley has been a Colorado State Champion and a US National Championships podium member with one Gold medal along the way. Katie Clouse will also now ride in the team’s signature green kit that is a fixture in the Colorado cyclocross community. Katie is a multi-time US National Cyclocross Champion, Cycling Utah’s 2014 Cyclist of the Year and often finds herself on the podium in the Women’s Open category races that feature many of the professionals that call Colorado home.

“We are extremely lucky to have the support of such great partners that help our program continue to grow.” says Adam Rachubinski, the team’s founder and director. “The people at Vista Auto Group and Subaru have believed in our vision for the team since we launched it 6 years ago and they want to work with us to continue to grow the sport and help young racers reach all of their potential. They are truly a group of passionate cyclists. After all of Gage Hecht’s success, we sat down and wanted to help more athletes. Vista Subaru was immediately on board, no hesitation. Those are the kind of partners that help a program be successful and viable long term.”

The team also puts a large emphasis on working with local equipment sponsors. “It makes a big difference when you can just drive a few hours and have a face to face with our partners. We often have brainstorming sessions about what equipment makes sense and why, which races provide the exposure that is important, what we can do for each other. Last year when we agreed to terms with Gage really late in the summer, it amazed all of us how quickly local companies like Moots, DT Swiss, Clement Cycling, TRP, and Wickwerks joined in. I think that’s largely related to the fact that the riders and staff have personal relationships with the people at those companies.” says Rachubinski.

All of these companies are based in either Colorado or Utah. The team is still in final negotiations with many of its equipment suppliers but expects most if not all of the 2014/15 sponsors to return for next season.

The Alpha Bicycle Company-Vista Subaru Elite Development Team will travel to Pan American Championships, US National Championships, and UCI Junior races throughout the country with an eye towards the top step on the podium and Worlds Team selections. The team will fill in the remaining schedule racing Colorado’s highly competitive local series.

Follow the team on Facebook by searching Alpha Bicycle Co – Vista Subaru Cycling Team and on Twitter @alphabicycle.

OOSTMALLE, Belgium – Wout van Aert (Vastgoedservice – Golden Palace Cycling Team) finished off his season with a solo victory at the 2015 Internationale Sluitingsprijs Oostmalle, a day after winning at the Clay Cross Lebbeke.

Van Aert crossed the line with time to spare, hoisting his Colnago in the air after a tough day’s racing, having clawed his way back from a crash early on, apparently breaking several spokes which could have ended the day right there. Kevin Pauwels (Sunweb – Napoleon Games Cycling Team) finished second, dragging it out to the line with newcomer to the Elites, Laurens Sweeck (Corendon-Kwadro), who put in an impressive show.

Tom Meeusen (Telenet Fidea Cycling Team) put on a show of his own, table-topping the barriers the first couple of times around as he put in an early dig to shake up the field. By the fourth lap the front of the race had rejoined and the counter attack by Sweek created the initial elite selection. Meeusen managed to stay in the mix, but finished fifth for the day, wheelieing across the finish line for some extra style points.

Lars van der Haar (Team Giant – Alpecin) was the first to react, latching onto Sweek’s wheel before being joined by Pauwels. Mathieu van de Poel (BKCP – Powerplus Cycling Team), who reported having back pain, found himself caught out by the move, finishing out of the top fifteen for the day.

Sven Nys (Crelan – AA Drink Team) abandoned in lap eight, also out of contention, having missed the selection early on, unable to make up the deficit.

By lap six the group had reformed and included van Aert, Sweeck, Pauwels, van der Haar, Meeusen and Vincent Baestaens (BKCP – Powerplus Cycling Team). Van Aert took to the front and opened up a lead followed by Sweeck. Pauwels and van der Haar bridged to Sweeck, but van Aert’s lead continued to increase. The race for the remaining podium positions was now underway.

Sweeck once again tried to attack but Pauwels was able to reel him in, the pair turning on to the finishing stretch together. Sweeck fought to hold off Pauwels but faded in the last few meters, having led the sprint. Van der Haar finished fourth a few moments later.

Also crossing the line in style, Bart Aernouts (Corendon-Kwadro) waved to the crowds in what will be his last appearance as a professional racer. The 32-year-old Belgian announced his retirement form cycling earlier this month, stating on his website, “I have a lot to thank the lovely cyclocross sport and am very proud of my own modest performance. I want first of all my family and the people who have always helped me, thank you very much.”

Aernouts leaves the sport after 11 years as a professional. “I’m everywhere received with open arms and was always treated with respect. What will I do after my career, I do not know, I think about everything, this will be clear in a while,” summed up Aernouts.

Mathieu van der Poel (BKCP-Powerplus) followed up his Men’s Elite win at the 2014 Boels Classic Heerlen with another today, this one while wearing the rainbow jersey of the World Champion. The young rider spent most of the race battling with fellow World’s podium racer Lars van der Haar (Giant-Shimano), which proved to be one of the most vicious battles of the day.

World Cup winner Kevin Pauwels (Sunweb Napoleon Games) spent much of the race battling the younger riders, although he finished in fourth as Vincent Baestaens (BKCP-Powerplus) was able to capture the final podium spot.

Jonathan Page, who is wrapping up his last European season in his career, took 16th place.

Sanne Cant won the Boels Classic Heerlen with more than enough time to zip up her kit and pose for the crowd as she finished across the line eight seconds ahead of second place. On the podium, she was joined by Nikki Harris and Ellen Van Loy, the latter who was 50 seconds behind the leader.

Swiss rider Johan Jacobs followed his win last week with another in the Juniors Race, well ahead of the field. Belgian rider Jappe Jaspers took second place, with Dutch rider Maik van der Heijden rounding out the podium. Mitch Groot followed them up in fourth.